Vegan Fried Goat Cheese Balls

“This tastes just like real goat cheese!” That’s what my guests said when I served these fried goat cheese balls. All of them thought it was real cheese. So YES it is possible to veganize (does this word even exist?) everything, even cheese! Did you check out my Vegan Aged Camembert by the way?

Crispy on the outside, and soft, melt-in-your-mouth on the inside. PURE deliciousness.

Also known as Chèvre chaud, this french classic is often served hot, all year round as an appetizer in restaurants.

I won’t tell you that you can make these in no time because it’s not the case. Making the cheese mixture takes about 3 days because it needs to ferment, that’s what gives it this wonderful flavor that is so similar to goat cheese.

I have a confession to make, I’m not a fan of store-bought vegan cheese. Except a few brands, most of them are made with a million ingredients and almost always have “cheese flavor” in the list. That sounds fake to me and heavily processed.

The cheese here is made with only THREE ingredients: raw cashews, probiotics and a pinch of salt. THAT’S IT.

This recipe is really easy to make, you just soak the cashews overnight, and add them to your food processor with the probiotics and some water. Process and let ferment at room temperature for about one day. Place in the fridge for another day to let the mixture firm up a little bit and you are ready to make balls!

If you don’t have probiotics, you can replace the water with some rejuvelac, the result will be approximately the same.

I advise you fry them just before serving, they will be crispier and the cheese inside will be very soft.

Serve these with a salad, some fresh cherry tomatoes, a drizzle of aged balsamic vinegar and you have a super decadent and hearty appetizer. Dressed to impress kind-of salad.

Ingredients

Goat Cheese

Fried Balls

Instructions

Goat Cheese

Drain the cashews, rinse them and place in the bowl of your food processor.

Open the probiotic capsules and add the powder to the bowl.

Add 3 tbsp of water, salt and process for about 3-5 minutes, scraping down the sides from time to time,

The mixture should be smooth but really thick. If needed, add 1 tablespoon of water at a time until smooth. Do not add too much water, you want to use as least as possible or you won’t be able to form balls later.

Transfer the mixture to a clean container, cover and let sit at room temperature for about one day to let it ferment.

After one day, taste it to see if it’s sharp enough for your taste and place in the fridge for another day. This step will make the cheese mixture firmer.

Fried Balls

Place the breadcrumbs in a large plate.

Prepare the cheese balls by taking about 1/4 cup of the cheese mixture with slightly wet hands, form balls. The cheese mixture will be softer at room temperature, I recommend you put it back in the fridge if it becomes too soft to make balls.

Roll each ball in the breadcrumbs, tapping off excess breadcrumbs. Place the cheese balls on a plate.

Heat about 3 inches of oil to 350°F in a deep pot. Set a large plate topped with some paper towels on the side.

Using a spoon, lower a few cheese balls into the oil. Work in small batches (3-4 at a time).

Remove from oil after about 1 minute, or until golden brown. Place the balls on the paper towels to drain. Repeat with the remaining cheese balls.

Serve warm with salad, rice, quinoa, etc.

Notes

Since these cheese balls are fried, nutritional information is just an estimate and can be inaccurate.
The longer you let the cheese mixture in the fridge, the sharper and stronger the taste.
You can keep the cheese mixture in your fridge for easily one week, it will firm up a little bit more and it will be even easier to make balls.

Comments

These look amazing. I love cashew spread and these look perfect. Can’t wait to try them soon. A quick question , can probiotic or rejeunelac be skipped completely. Does it aid fermentation ? Thank you . Pinning it .

Thanks! 🙂
Yes, probiotics/rejuvelac are really important for the fermentation, they add a nice tangy/sour flavor that is really similar to real fresh goat cheese. Without it the cashew mixture will not ferment.
Maybe you could try to add some lemon juice and a pinch of garlic powder, you won’t get the exact same flavor but I think that would be pretty tasty.
I hope this helps!

Just discovered your blog (found the Camembert on Pinterest and now I’m tumbling down the rabbit hole)- oh my goodness I’m already hooked. These look wonderful! Plus they only take days, not weeks- suits my patience level better haha.

As a side note, my husband is quite allergic to nuts (including cashews) but I’ve had excellent success trading cashews for unsalted raw sunflower seeds. They need soaking, but I’ve generally been able to make a direct volume swap previously- just in case you or any of your readers want to experiment. As soon as I hunt down some probiotic I’ll be trying a batch of my own!

Holy moly this was good! I used about half of the batch to make the fried balls and I used panko because I didn’t have any breadcrumbs on hand and they turned out great. I used the other half of the batch and put it in the smoker for about a half hour and it turned out amazing. It got devoured in seconds by a group of non-vegans. Thanks for the recipe!

I’m really glad you liked them! I agree it makes a lot of cheese balls, but they keep really well in the refrigerator (without the breadcrumbs).
The smoker is a great idea by the way, I’m sure it adds even more flavor!
Thank you so much for the feedback! 😉

Would baking work with these? Sometimes I pretend like frying foods is bad and look for alternatives to appease my conscience. My cashews are fermenting away as I type and I am excited to try these baked or fried.

I have also ordered the cultures for your Camembert and Bleu recipes and can’t wait to get those going. Thank you so much for these amazing recipes!

I never tried baking them, but I don’t think it would be as tasty as fried. Frying the cheese balls make them very crispy on the outside, I doubt you will get that texture with baking.
I don’t make fried foods very often either, but once in a while it won’t do you any harm 🙂
You’re welcome!

ok, mixture in the fridge and feeling super excited. Also can not wait to do the blue cheese one as soon as I can get my hands on some penicillin. Your recipes are really fresh and exciting for a vegetarian transitioning to veganism. Thanks a lot.

Hi there! Do you think I could substitute the cashews for walnuts? It may give it a more “earthier” taste but still stays true to the tart flavor. Feedback or thoughts? I guess I could just give it a go and see what pans out. Thank you for this recipe. I am very excited to give it a try.

That looks amazing! One of my favorite vegetarian meals involves sweet potato noodles with fried sage topped with little gobs of goat cheese. Do you think the unfried cheese would make a good vegan substitute here? Or is the cooking integral to the taste?

Hi Amy,
Thanks! Sure you don’t have to fry them, just make smaller pieces to top your noodles. Be aware it won’t melt as much as real cheese.
By the way, it can take up to 48h to get a sharp taste in the winter, taste it to check if it’s tangy enough after 24h, the texture should also be airy because of the fermentation.

Thomas, I too love your excellent recipes. I am brand new to veganism but a lifelong serious home cook and I so appreciate the complexity of your thinking about food. There are many very good vegan recipes out there but so far the ones I am finding tend to involve a fairly straightforward combining of flavors. This can make for delicious dishes, no doubt, but I have missed a sense of richness, flavors developing over time. That is what I have found with your recipes. Thank you for that!

And now for my question! I have just made my first batch of goat cheese balls, following the recipe at exactly. The mixture matured at room temperature for 24 hours and then in the fridge for 4 days–it seemed to take that long for the flavor to develop. I made the balls last night and while tasty they were in texture and color more like falafel. In your photos, the interior looks creamy and pale. Any advice on how to get closer to the texture you seem to have achieved?

It all depends on the room temperature, in the spring/summer the cashew cream can ferment in 12-16 hours while it can take up to 48h in winter. Taste it from time to time until it tastes like fresh cheese and has a nice acidity. Flavors will develop a bit in the fridge, but not that much, the main flavor really develops at room temperature (I would say 65-70°F).

Yes the interior should be very pale, did you use raw cashews? I would also recommend covering the cashew cream with a clean towel so it doesn’t dry out too much in contact with the air. Was the cashew cream at least pale in color before frying?

Regarding the texture, I think it’s because you didn’t blend it enough. If you don’t have a very powerful food processor I would recommend using a blender and scraping the sides regularly until you get a thick and very smooth consistency. I hope this helps, and good luck for your next batch!

Hi Steph,
Something definitely went wrong, it should not taste like cashews. The flavour should change and taste like fresh cheese with a tangy taste. I would recommend trying again with other probiotics, I hope it will work for you next time!

Hi! I’m so excited to find your page, all your recipes look wonderful. Two questions: One, since I have probiotic powder – how much should I use in this recipe? Two, if I purchase the Roquefort bacteria for the Camembert cheese – are there any other recipes I can use that in? Thank you for the recipes and for being a super awesome vegan!!

Hi! Thanks for your recipes! I tried this recipe this weekend and ended up with light red spots on top of the cashew mixture after fermenting at room temperature. I’m wondering if you’d know what it might be and it’s salvageable. Thanks so much!

The capsules I’m using contain 500M microorganisms (acidophilus), so if yours contain less than that you should use a bit more. I always used 4 capsules but I’m almost sure it would work with less.
Regarding the fermented juices, just replace the 4 tbsp water with the sauerkraut juice or rejuvelac. I had the chance to try with quinoa rejuvelac and it worked, so I guess it will work with sauerkraut juice too. Good luck!